Aerofirm and ARPAS-UK are delighted to announce they have been awarded funding as part of the Future Flight Challenge: Closing the Skills Gap competition.
The project concerns the quantification of risks within complex drone operations, where there is currently a skills gap within the industry. Whilst this approach is used in other sectors, such as traditional manned aviation, its application is very domain specific and it is not yet widely used for drones.
The course will cover the fundamentals of risk quantification then take a deep dive into the specific aspects associated with drone operation such as platform, air and ground risks, human factors and target levels of safety. These topics will be underpinned by case studies and worked examples showing how the techniques are applied to real world situations.
The ultimate output will be a training course that supports the generation of both complex and scalable BVLOS safety cases. It will provide not only the tools needed to achieve this, but develop a mindset which needs to be embodied in any current and future organisation, as the responsibility of the operation is not just in the hands of the author but of all the staff in a company. The course will pull the UK drone industry back to the front of the queue, bringing jobs, investment and unlocking the skies.
Dr Owen McAree, Director of Aerofirm, said: “With this course we aim to help upskill the UK drone industry in the quantification of the risks associated with scalable BVLOS operation. This approach is fundamental in transitioning the industry from todays small scale trials to widespread commercially viable operations, whilst also highlighting the areas of technology development needed to unlock future scalability”
Anne-Lise Scaillierez, CEO of ARPAS-UK, said: “This project will create a course to underpin scalable BVLOS operations. Training operators to understand risk and how to put a number to each element will help to enable safe rollout of BVLOS in the UK. This is fundamental to expanding the drone industry in the UK.”
This course will be developed alongside the soon to be launched ARPAS-UK BVLOS Technical Special Interest Group, which is the companion group which will help to supply the data needed to support BVLOS operations. It is also aligned with the NATS BVLOS Forum which contains the UK’s premier drone operators who will be the ones to write the safety case.
To express interest in the ARPAS BVLOS Technical SIG:
Contact:
bvlos@arpas.uk
About Aerofirm:
Aerofirm Ltd are experts in the technical aspects of commercial drone operations with a focus on safety engineering. Director, Dr Owen McAree, previously worked as a researcher and Head of Flight Operations at a number of top UK universities where he oversaw drone operations around the world and published over 40 peer-reviewed articles on topics ranging from artificial intelligence to risk quantification. During this time he gained experience in developing and delivering course material for students from a diverse academic background.
For more information visit: www.linkedin.com/company/aerofirm/about/
About ARPAS-UK:
Founded in 2013, ARPAS-UK’s objective is to collectively achieve the benefits of using drones for its members, the UK economy and wider society. ARPAS-UK is the only non-commercial professional body, solely representing the drone community in the UK.
As well as promoting Best Practice, the Association also encourages a culture of collaboration and information sharing so that members are better informed and better prepared to make the most from market opportunities. Promoting our members and the standards we set, enables end users to easily identify the best and most appropriate operators to hire for their specific needs.
For more information about us: About Us – ARPAS UK
For more information on joining: Joining Info – ARPAS UK
The Future Flight Challenge
The Future Flight challenge at UK Research and Innovation and delivered by Innovate UK, has over the past few years invested £125 million in funding to develop and show integrated aviation systems and new vehicle technologies. The Skills Gap is part of this funding and will invest up to £500,000 into projects that can create and deliver course content and materials to support skills, talent and training across the future flight sector.
For more about the Future Flight Challenge: UKRI Challenge Fund – UKRI
Mohammed Hasan